of the horrific shooting in newtown, connecticut, on friday, it was impossible for me not to react not just as a senator, but as a parent, as a father. and as my wife and i spent the weekend reflecting on the heartbreaks loss of 20 innocent children and 6 of their teachers and faculty, as we talked to our own three young children about what had happened, we thought about the grief, the anguish. a whole range of different parents deeply touched by this tragic incident. the first, of course, are the parents who lost their precious, innocent children. their six- and seven-year olds in the massacre at sandy hook elementary school last friday. parents like joel and joann baker who lost their precocious outgoing red-haired daughter charlotte just six years old. joann recently bought charlotte a holiday dress in her favorite color -- pink -- and a pair of white boots. charlotte begged and begged to wear her new outfit early and on friday, december 14, the last day of charlotte's young life, her mother joann agreed. or parents like steve and rebecca kowalski, who lost their son chase. two days befo